A google search on the word meditation results in about 2,610,000 hits. That's a lot of meditation information folks. In this issue we will take a peek at some of those meditation sites. Sure, a lot of sites will be left out. If you don't see your favorite site or meditation practice listed here, please understand that in this issue we are simply taking a look at some of the various offering. We are not endorsing or criticizing any particualr form of meditation. The sites listed have some excerpts that will, hopefully, illustrate the general theme of the sites. Some follow the more traditional meditation practices, some are fee based (for profit meditation) and some may seem more or less on the 'fringes' of meditation.

Using love as the example again, you would concentrate on love, love, love, love. You might then find your mind filling with thoughts of love -- motherly love, fatherly love, love of country, love of money, qualified love, unqualified love, puppy love. Everything in the universe that love is connected to will come to you. Every feeling of love, every sensation, every thought. And since, as Albert Einstein tells us, everything in the universe is relative to everything else, ultimately your meditation on "love" will connect you to everything. At this point, the unity of the object of your meditation and your mind, as illustrated in the fourth illustration, occurs. This is the state of Contemplation and is the pentultimate state of consciousess. Where we usually are only conscious of our body and ego and consider ourselves apart from the rest of the universe, with the experience of Contemplation we become conscious of the cosmos and know ourselves to be a part of it and realize our unity with all of it. This is Realization, Cosmic Consciousness. It is our birthright and destiny to know this exquisite state first hand and enjoy the Truth, Consciousness, and Bliss that is our eternal true nature. Thus the justification in expending whatever energy is necessary to learn to meditate and to begin to make Meditation an important part of our lives.

The Insight Meditation Society was founded in 1975 as a nonprofit organization to provide an environment conducive to the practice of vipassana (insight) and metta (lovingkindness) meditation, and to preserve the essential Buddhist teachings of liberation. IMS now operates two retreat facilities – the Retreat Center and The Forest Refuge, which are set on 160 secluded wooded acres in the quiet country of central Massachusetts.

http://www.dharma.org/teachers/sharon/interviews/ss_courage.htm

The Cultivation of Courage

Achieving peace in a dangerous world

By Sharon Salzberg

[Op-Ed for msnbc.com, December 30, 2002]

[excerpted from the above site]

I am inspired by Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the democracy movement in Burma (now Myanmar), recipient of the 1991 Noble Peace Prize, which was awarded while she was under house arrest. She is a mother who could not raise her children because she was working for democracy, a wife who could not say goodbye to her dying husband because the military dictatorship of Burma would not grant him a visa. Talking about patience, steadfastness, the capacity we each have to overcome incredible obstacles, she said, “A saint is a sinner who keeps on trying.”

Aung San Suu Kyi reminds me that a great deal of life is mysterious, and that when we do what seems to be just a little bit of good, the temporary result we see in front of us isn’t necessarily the end of the story. We can have faith that the small action we’ve just taken may influence someone else, which may lead to something else again — we should never discount our efforts.

http://holisticonline.com/meditation/hol_meditation.htm

Welcome To The Meditation Infocenter in HolisticOnline.com!

Meditation is one of the proven alternative therapies. It can be broadly classified under the mind-body medicine.

More and more doctors are prescribing meditation as a way to lower blood pressure, improve exercise performance in people with angina, help people with asthma breathe easier, relieve insomnia and generally relax the everyday stresses of life. Meditation is a safe and simple way to balance a person's physical, emotional, and mental states. It is simple; but can benefit everybody.

The use of Meditation for healing is not new. Meditative techniques are the product of diverse cultures and peoples around the world. It has been rooted in the traditions of the world's great religions. In fact, practically all religious groups practice meditation in one form or another. The value of Meditation to alleviate suffering and promote healing has been known and practiced for thousands of years.

It has been scientifically shown that meditation works. We, at HolisticOnline, take great pride in providing this in-depth treatment of Meditation. As always, we invite your comments. Or, perhaps, you may have information you want to share with the fellow readers.

The purpose of this site is to share ideas and technology that can assist in unleashing the great forces of the mind. To provide tools that allow human beings to realize their tremendous hidden potential. To access higher states of consciousness and experience transcendence. To become more alive and connected to a vision of life fulfilled with higher purpose and meaning.

"You Can Be Enjoying The Amazing Benefits And Physical And Mental Rewards Of Meditation Inside 30 Days And Save Yourself The Huge Cost That Most People Pay To Learn"

The Benefits You Will Gain From Learning To Meditate With A Professional Learning Method

When learning meditation bearing in mind the above points, the exciting thing and no doubt the reason you are looking to learn are the change's that will occur in your life almost effortlessly through your practice. With the correct program you can be noticing huge differences in your life within a fortnight including some of the most common and quickly achieved benefits new meditators comment on below:

The still point within
This shift in awareness toward the source of being can open the door to the fundamental change we seek in life. It is this still point within where we discover that there is no world apart from us, and where we may taste the peace and infinite consciousness which is our true home.

There are a lot of interesting and beautiful photographs on this site. Follow the page arrows in the upper right hand corner.

Oh, ok, some of these pics defy interpretation! IT is a big, big universe folks.

Vipassana Meditation is the Traditional Buddhist style of meditation. It's purpose is to strengthen concentration, ground yourself, awaken compassion, to awaken to yourself and your true nature, to become fully conscious and to develop buddhi (the discriminating intellect)

"Buddhi is the mental power which enables one to contemplate the eternal."

The Buddha wandered for many years, and as he encountered others, they recognized a spiritual greatness in him. He eventually gathered many followers (disciples) who wished to learn from Buddha. One day, his followers were debating the nature of Buddha. They came to him with a question.

The disciples went off to consider this response, and debate the issue further. Soon they returned with another question.

The disciples again went off to consider this response, and debate the issue further. Again, they returned with another question.

Many different meditative traditions have come into being throughout the world during the last five thousand years, developing specific theologies and rituals through countless generations of deep spiritual exploration. In spite of their seeming differences, all these meditative traditions have one goal in common that of bringing human beings into more direct experiential contact with the spiritual realities of the universe.

By definition, there can be only one Infinite Presence, one Universal Creative Source, one all-encompassing Consciousness for us to tap into. So even though the various human civilizations have developed quite diverse ways for approaching spiritual reality, the Infinite Presence we seek communion with is always the same.

[editor's note: kundalini awakening can be quite dramatic and powerful. Please do some homework before trying any form of meditation that proposes to 'awaken' kundalini.]

The Eight Levels of Raja Yoga
by Daniel Carr

Introduction

The real power of Martial Arts and Yoga as a systems of transformation lies in linking physical training to meditation practices. Many adepts in the arts practice breathing and concentration exercises, most of them receiving encouraging results for their efforts. However, very few have an opportunity to participate in what could be defined as a complete system of meditation.

The Hindus have five precepts for self-restraint, which are very similar to the Buddhists’ five. The traditional prayer greeting of the Buddhists and Hindus is considered a conscious recognition of these five principles, one for each finger, by the exchangers of the sign. The precepts are:

Help yourself.

Heal yourself.

You, me, every human being on this planet, is born with an incredible capacity for self-healing. As we move through life, this ability to heal and repair works with every single breath we draw, 24 hours a day, especially when we kick off our shoes and rest!

SpiritTalk's Meditations

The Crystal

This meditation will guide you with bringing universal energy into your body through the use of a real or imagined crystal. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable, return your focus to your calm breathing.

Well folks, we hope you have enjoyed this smorgasboard of meditation web sites. If you should ask, my favorite meditation technique is to simply sit, stare out the window at the blue sky and enjoy feeling the goodness of merely being alive.

Thank you so much for everything you share. I read a quote on the Highlights a couple of days ago that was attributed to Nelson Mandela's inaugural speech in 1994 that was really touching. Coincidentally (a couple of days later), I came across the same quote by Marianne Williamson, which prompted me to do a little bit of googling.

I never directly contribute to the highlights, but I truly appreciate what's in them. Thank you again :)

I've just read the little bit of wisdom by Earl McHugh below. Someone should tell him that it is usually a good thing to hear a "teacher" before criticizing him/her. His opinion on Eckhart Tolle is totally off-base. I was fortunate enough to spend a week in India with him. It was a tremendous experience. Eckhart does not teach "slavish adherence" to anything. On the contrary, he always warns about adding new beliefs to the already cluttered mind, whatever these beliefs might be. The teaching is about stopping compulsive thinking through surrendering to the present moment which results in finding the "I am" without the "am". That's also what Ramana taught us.

Naturally I cannot dispute what another person says he heard Tolle teach.
My language was strong, as it usually is, because I wanted to hammer home the idea that clinging to " NOW " is just as bad as clinging to a religious teaching or any doctrine or idea as the road to anything. It is the clinging that closes the mind.
When a zen master or other teacher asks us to be " present " he does not mean, one hopes, that this is another state to cling to. We are always present physically, to ourselves and others, but often absent in a psychological sense. As soon as you focus on being " present " however that very attachment closes your mind to other experiences and ideas .
Earl McHugh